Many listeners reacted angrily when George Lamb joined 6 Music in 2007 and made his lack of knowledge about music his ­gimmick. Photograph: BBC

In 1922, Lord Reith declared the BBC's mission in elegant terms. "The BBC is here to inform, educate and entertain, to enrich people's lives." Eighty years later, I fell in love with a radio station that followed these guidelines to the letter. BBC 6 Music's remit was simple and unfashionably instinctive, to my open ears: to bring together knowledgeable presenters full of enthusiasm about music; to provide platforms for up-and-coming bands; and to make good use of the corporation's astonishing archive. Launched with the lovable tones of Phill Jupitus on the morning of 11 March 2002, BBC 6 Music stretched the boundaries of what the corporation could do with its available resources – and did it by employing people who cherished music, and promoting its programmes to the people who craved it.

For music fans like me, the station's existence is a no-brainer. But if the station becomes the highest profile victim of the rumoured cycle of cuts to hit the BBC, these values might be its downfall. In 2010, passion and intelligence are too often equated with snobbery and elitism, often by people who don't have hugely cared-for record collections – which possibly includes shadow culture secretaries, former co-authors of Tory manifestos and chief executives in charge of media conglomerates.

BBC 6 Music is a station that recognises the centrality of songs in our lives, the memories they summon, and the new experiences they shape for us. It does so while looking far and wide into the future, never retreating into nostalgia. The playlists for its regular shows, especially, are refreshingly eclectic. It also gives different genres equal weight, which reflects the way our listening habits have changed in a world in which so much music is readily available.

Some critics say that committed music fans should be happy with their MP3 players on constant shuffle, but I disagree. The amount of music available in 2010 is so vast that it helps for an authoritative voice to guide through its maze, and 6 Music has tonnes of them, such as the razor-sharp Lauren Laverne and the lovable Gideon Coe. Its DJs share their own tastes, and impress their diverse personalities upon the audience. This is precisely why its listeners feel they have such a close relationship to it, and why many of them – me included – reacted so fiercely when George Lamb joined the station in 2007, and made his lack of knowledge about music his ­gimmick. Instead of relying on silly noises and publicity stunts, we enjoy 6 Music when its presenters allow the music to do the talking.

The station should also be praised for supporting independent labels and emerging artists who have struggled in the face of falling budgets and file-sharing. Tom Robinson's Evening Sequence show guarantees that all music sent to the show will be listened to, while DJs such as Steve Lamacq are still dedicated gig-goers. In a culture bombarded with marketing slogans telling us what's hot and what's new, we need people to separate the beauties from the bullshit. In this way, many of 6 Music's presenters carry on the valuable legacy of John Peel. They see the promotion of a new act as one of the joys of their job rather than a risk to be analysed through board meetings and focus groups.

BBC 6 Music should also be praised because it includes shows that are weird and wonderful, that educate and inform the BBC audience in ways Reith would have admired. Stuart Maconie's Sunday programme Freak Zone delves into the outer realms of pop, rock and jazz; celebrity presenters such as Jarvis Cocker and Elbow's Guy Garvey have also been used wisely, combining their song choices with storytelling, poetry and art. Only 15 years ago, the likes of Mark Radcliffe and Marc Riley were playing with similar ideas on Radio 1, and with notable success. If these ­elements are removed from the BBC schedule entirely, you wonder how diverse audiences are being privileged over listening figures.

If anything, BBC 6 Music hasn't been promoted enough – its wonders largely spread by word-of-mouth. If only it was supported rather than sidelined, and if niche audiences were celebrated as a vital part of the public service remit, rather than canned, it would become known far wider for being the station it is – the Radio 3 for the pop and rock generation, thorough but tender, wide-ranging but warm, and a bright light for all music.

Don't axe 6 Music by Phill Jupitus

Phill Jupitus

Being a DJ was never in my game plan, but when I was asked to launch BBC 6 Music and present the breakfast show, I thought I'd give it a go. The intention was to provide radio for the discerning music fan. There would be a more alternative playlist, an element of free choice for presenters and access to the BBC's archive of live and session performances. I played an eclectic range of artists, both new and old, unfettered by the formulaic constraints of a chart-based playlist. One morning we had a text vote for whether or not to play Curtain Call by the Damned, in its full 18 minutes of overwrought gothic glory. Hundreds voted yes. Of course, by minute 10, most had changed their mind. That is the beauty of 6 ­Music. If you don't like what's on now, there's always something good on in a minute. Cutting 6 Music is an act of cultural vandalism, and an ­affront to the memory of John Peel.